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The Precision Israeli Attacks on Iranians and Hizbullah in Syria
(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) Andrew J. Tabler - On April 1, Israel reportedly struck a four-story "military building of Quds Forces disguised as a civilian building" in Damascus, killing IRGC-QF Commander in Syria and Lebanon Mohammad Reza Zahedi, his deputy Mohammad-Hadi Haji-Rahimi, and five other IRGC officers. In the six months since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel, open-source reporting indicates Israel has carried out over 50 air strikes in Syria, including five on Aleppo airport, two on the adjacent Nairab military airport, four on Damascus airport, and one on the Mezzeh military airport. All reportedly targeted Iranian assets, including weapons warehouses - a strike tempo nearly double that of pre-Oct. 7 levels. These strikes reflect a sharp uptick in targeting Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Iran-aligned groups' leaderships operating in Syria, including 18 IRGC officers, 32 from Lebanese Hizbullah, and one from Hamas. Some 75 Syrians also have perished in the strikes. In comparison, between January and October 2023, only two IRGC officers and none from Hizbullah or Hamas perished from Israeli strikes. Since Oct. 7, there have been between 20 and 30 missile or rocket attacks from Syria on Israeli-controlled territory. Nearly all reportedly "landed in open areas" and led to no Israeli casualties. The writer is a senior fellow in the Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute.